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Shadow Complex - Platformer

Started by owl Apr 13, 2011 at 2:39 PM 5 replies 2.8k views
Original Post
owl
owl
[size="1"]EDIT: Now I think about it, this thread could go to the Game Design forum to catch the opinion of users who do not frequent the lounge...
Shadow Complex

As I'm working on a platformer myself I started youtubing platformer videos and I came across this marvelous piece of game. The graphics are stunning, the levels seem to be streamed, the gameplay is so complete and the cinematics have nothing to envy to most Hollywood productions. I really don't see how a platformer could do better than this

The link to the wiki article is worth every word. Take a look at this excerpt:

[font="sans-serif"]Chair Entertainment's creative director Donald Mustard stated that much of Shadow Complex is based around the gameplay of Super Metroid, a game he considers "the pinnacle of 2D game design".[sup][4][/sup] Much of their effort was in creating the Metroid-style of gameplay, a first for their company. The first month of development was spent having the team replaying the various Metroid games in order to establish the language and concepts of such games for development in order to expand on enjoyable sections while avoiding the mistakes of these games. Chair's design process started by drawing out the game's world on graph paper, using the concepts of tile-based games to craft out the world, despite the final game not being tile-based. This process set certain rules, such as how high the character may jump with the various upgrades or how far the character must run before a certain power would activate. They then played out the game on this paper map to make sure that all parts of the game were possible to complete. Such a map was also used to help with the game's pacing, making sure that the player's interest in the game would remain despite the acquisition of more and more powerups.[sup][5][/sup][/font]
[font="sans-serif"]Roughly six months into development, they recognized that their initial selected jump height was too large and did not fit with the game, forcing the team to redesign the map with a smaller jump height; Mustard noted this was one of the few changes they made that "hurt" but was caught early enough in the process to be repaired.[sup][5][/sup] The team also had to consider the impact of the variety of power-ups they wanted to include, made more complex by their desire to have the power-ups usable anywhere. For example, while other games would specifically limit the use of a hookshot to specific surfaces, Chair's developers sought to have their tool usable on any surface, and had to consider all the potentially game-breaking routes that would be created by introducing the tool too early.[sup][5][/sup] Several iterations of this paper map were performed, though Mustard noted that about 85% of their original design remained in the final map.[sup][6][/sup] With a brush stroke tool within the Unreal Engine, they were then able to quickly build out their drawn map into the 3D computer engine, using a cylinder to represent the player. After working on tightening the feel of the player's movement controls with the simplistic map, they then began prototyping the rest of the game.[sup][color="#0645AD"][[color="#0645AD"]4[color="#0645AD"]][/sup][/font]
[...]
[font="sans-serif"][sup] [/sup][/font][/quote]


This is the series of videos I found on youtube, this guy took the job of recording almost the entire game for people to see:

[media]
[/media]


Here a Super Metroid video to compare:

[size="1"](something strange happened here)

This is so awesome. When I stare at what I do all alone I feel so little in comparision, still watching this awesome games encourages me and inspires me into trying my best following their steps.

Has anybody actually played it?
[size="2"]I like the Walrus best.
noisecrime
noisecrime
Its a great game, enjoyable to play and one of the few arcade games i've bought on XBL.

It doesn't really do anything new though, its just 'almost' perfectly desgined, with clear objectives, fluid upgrade path for weapons (often opening up previously inaccessible areas), simple and responsive control scheme, simple presentation, strong puzzle element, decent plot, intelligent use of 3D to enhance what is really just a 2D game.

That's not to say its the pinnacle of platformers, just a very well implemented one. I'd say its the best 'traditional' platformer i've played, but I play very few so i'm not sure that counts for much, plus the other 'platformers' I have played often aren't focused purely on platformer gaming aspects (e.g. Braid, Limbo, Trine).

However I wouldn't let it get you down about your own platformer game. Neither should you hold this up as something to emulate, at least not at face value (i.e clone). The reason in my opinion that it is good is simply due to have a solid core game mechanic at heart and a high level of attention to detail, not to mention considerable resources compared to a single bedroom coder. Ignoring budget/time requirements, a good core mechanic and attention to detail can be applied to any game.

An interesting question might be would the game be as good if it was developed solely by a single person within a reasonable amount of time and limited budget? Right there you'll lose the fancy cut-scene, decent voice actors and possibly much of quality of the graphics. So would it still stand up? I'd say Yes, though unlikely to have been quite the success it was since graphics and quality can go a long way to persuading gamers to download a demo or purchase. The reason is that its very nicely balanced, rewarding your exploration and persistence with weapons that enable you to progress the story and discover previously inaccessible areas, providing a challenge, but one that is generally simple for a gamer to accomplish.

Again this comes down to a solid core game mechanic with attention to detail, get those right in your game and perhaps it too will have someone posting about how wonderful it is
way2lazy2care
way2lazy2care
Have you seen the secret ending in the first level?
Khaiy
Khaiy
That final area-- the cabin in the lake-- seems like it's stolen from the book Empire. Except for the flying ship part. I bet that the game's a lot more enjoyable than the book though. Not that that's saying much.
     -------R.I.P.-------      Selective Quote ~Too Late - Too Soon~
owl
owl

That final area-- the cabin in the lake-- seems like it's stolen from the book Empire. Except for the flying ship part. I bet that the game's a lot more enjoyable than the book though. Not that that's saying much.


The game script is based on that book. They got a license and everything. Read the wiki!

As soon as a spanish translation comes out I'm going to get it for sure.

-o-


[size=2]Heh I notice that the parts where the ground isn't horizontal they place grass and bushes to hide the character's feet. There is an scene where the character takes an elevator and the rifle goes through the wall.
[size="2"]I like the Walrus best.
Rixter
Rixter
It is a very good game, I highly recommend it. My favorite genre: Metroid. It's not "perfect", but I don't really have any complaints about it either, a very solid game. The only thing that could have been better IMO is that the world itself isn't as nicely put together (design wise), flow as well as, or really is as interesting as Super Metroid. But then, what is? I really hope to see more games like this.

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